QUICK NEWS, 3-8: SUPPORT NEW ENERGY SEZ PREZ & DOE; THE NEW PICKENS WIND PLAN; OHIO FAILS SUN; WHAT EFFICIENCY CAN DO FOR FLA

SUPPORT NEW ENERGY SEZ PREZ & DOE
Obama, Chu Emphasize Domestic Jobs
Amy Harder, March 5, 2010 (National Journal)

"President Obama and [Department of Energy (DOE)] Secretary Steven Chu both underscored the importance of American clean energy jobs… in separate announcements…on the heels of a call from four Democratic senators…to halt stimulus funding on wind projects for fear that jobs in this industry are being created overseas instead of in the U.S. Neither Obama nor Chu made a direct reference to the senators' efforts."

[President Obama:] "We need to invest in the jobs of the future and in the industries of the future, because the country that leads in clean energy and energy efficiency today, I'm absolutely convinced, is going to lead the global economy tomorrow…I want that country to be the United States of America."

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It is time not to back off of New Energy-supportive policies but to add them. (click to enlarge)

"Obama didn't announce any specific new initiatives but continued to promote the "cash for caulkers" home energy efficiency rebate program that he discussed in detail earlier this week.

"Chu also announced a $72 million conditional loan guarantee to SAGE Electrochromics, a company that manufactures energy-saving window technology for commercial buildings. The funding for this loan comes from the Energy Policy Act of 2005, not the stimulus."

For only the money it costs to pay for the ink in the pen the President uses to sign an RES into law, the nation gains more than a quarter of a million jobs. (click to enlarge)

[DOE Secretary Chu:] "Right now, we are behind in the clean energy race. For example, China is spending about $9 billion a month on clean energy…While we manufactured 40 percent of solar cells in the mid 1990s, today we produce just 7 percent. Rather than sending billions overseas to pay for clean energy technology, we must start investing these dollars in American workers, industries and innovation."

"At a [recent] Senate hearing…DOE official Matt Rogers pushed back against the senators' request to halt stimulus wind funding, saying that such a move would hinder domestic job creation."


THE NEW PICKENS WIND PLAN
Pickens To Develop 500 MW Of Wind Power
Cassandra Sweet, March 4, 2010 (Dow Jones News Wires via Wall Street Journal)

"Energy investor T. Boone Pickens…is putting together deals to develop 500 megawatts of U.S. wind power with turbines made by General Electric Co. (GE), and will make a formal announcement in 30 days.

"Pickens, who is chairman of hedge fund BP Capital Management, wouldn’t say where the wind farms would be located, but he said they wouldn’t be in the Texas Panhandle, despite its strong wind resources, because of a lack of transmission capacity. The facilities will be developed using 324 wind turbines made by GE."

The Pickens Plan

"…[Pickens] noted that the project will be half its initial size, and had to be scaled back due to low natural gas prices that have driven down power prices and put pressure on renewable energy projects.

"Wind power is profitable when natural gas prices are about $7 a million British thermal units, Pickens said. By contrast, gas in New York was recently trading for $4.58. Pickens said he is still committed to developing wind power, despite the current market difficulties."

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"The former Texas oilman has been an ardent advocate for greater development and use of renewable energy and natural gas to replace foreign oil. He predicted that oil prices will rise to $300 a barrel by 2020 and the U.S. will rely on imported oil for three-fourths of demand if the nation doesn’t shift to alternative fuels.

"Pickens, who also owns a large stake in a natural gas vehicle fuel company called Clean Energy Fuels Corp., said the U.S. has 4,000 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas reserves and the nation should retool its transportation system to fuel trucks and other vehicles with the homegrown fuel…"


OHIO FAILS SUN
Report: Ohio missed out on solar industry jobs
March 7, 2010 (AP via Dayton Daily News)

"Ohio has missed out on thousands of manufacturing jobs in the solar industry because it was slow to phase out certain taxes and make other adjustments to lure factories…Industry analysts say Ohio is fighting both the perception and reality of having a noncompetitive tax structure compared with other states. Despite having successful solar research companies in the Toledo area, the state hasn't seen that translate into thousands of factory jobs, The Blade reported…

"In the past decade, dozens of manufacturing plants have opened or are near completion in California, Oregon, Massachusetts and other states…Ohio was hampered in its ability to attract solar industry jobs because the corporate franchise tax and tangible personal property tax weren't completely phased out until this year…"

Ohio has yet to put these resources to work. (click to enlarge)

"The state also continues to subsidize coal. The Ohio Constitution says state funding for coal projects can be in the form of grants, but funding for alternative energy projects, such as solar, must be in the form of loans…While Ohio does offer loans for solar projects, it doesn't offer tax credits specifically targeted toward solar equipment manufacturers like those offered in Oregon and Michigan…

"Gov. Ted Strickland said his state was late in constructing policies to attract solar companies. But he also believes Ohio is now competitive because of progress made by his administration…Ohio offers a job creation tax credit between 25 percent and 55 percent to qualifying companies, a job-retention credit for any company maintaining 500 employees and committing $50 million in investment, and grants for companies to pay for employee training in renewable energy technology."

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"Ohio has seven solar energy equipment manufacturers…By comparison, California has 140 solar manufacturers. There are 37 in Arizona, 26 in Florida and 23 in New York. In the Midwest, Illinois and Michigan each have 15…

"Ohio's new energy standards, adopted in 2008, have yet to produce a large market for solar panels…The state is requiring 12.5 percent of electricity sold in Ohio to be from renewable energy resources by 2025…Strickland said… the work his administration has done to improve Ohio's tax structure and other incentives for manufacturing will result in the announcements of new jobs in the coming months."


WHAT EFFICIENCY CAN DO FOR FLA
Energy efficiency also helps low-income customers
Joe Gibbons, March 4, 2010 (Tallahassee Democrat)

"Over the last several years, Floridians have seen double-digit percentage increases in utility bills. Spiking fossil fuel costs are straining the financial resources of many families…Energy efficiency breaks this trend of rising rates. A failure to achieve greater energy efficiency hurts all of Florida's electricity customers, particularly low- and fixed-income customers…

"Making efficiency programs available to low-income residents is especially valuable because those groups pay a greater share of their income on energy bills…A well-managed energy efficiency program is the lowest cost resource available to Florida's electric utilities, costing about two to four cents per kilowatt hour. By contrast, the average cost of generating more electricity is at least four times higher, at 12 cents per kilowatt hour…It's a simple choice…"

Florida has room to improve. (click to enlarge)

"…Over the next decade in at least 16 states, energy use is expected to be reduced by 10 percent to 20 percent…To its credit, the Public Service Commission took a step in the right direction recently by ordering the state's power companies to offer more efficiency opportunities to their customers…such as compact fluorescent light bulbs, low-flow showerheads and water heater blankets…[T]he PSC added a new solar energy program for homeowners…including solar water heaters and rooftop panels.

"The total cost for the solar program is estimated to be 7 cents to 18 cents a month for the average customer, so these incentives will have only a tiny impact on bills…[I]ndividual homeowners [should] share in the cost of solar and the entire body of utility customers [in the] benefits without footing the whole bill…"

Florida's new policies are spot-on. (click to enlarge)
Florida's new policies are spot-on. (click to enlarge)

"…[I]mplementing energy efficiency [also] creates jobs — especially critical in a state approaching 12-percent unemployment. Improving efficiency requires a work force of electricians, air conditioning installers, carpenters, roofers and more to deliver the services and products that reduce customer bills. Efficiency can add nearly 20,000 Florida jobs by achieving 15-percent energy savings by 2020…

"[E]fficiency should play a larger role in the lives of Floridians. The savings are especially critical to lower-income customers. While the PSC has taken a step in the right direction, more needs to be done to make efficiency opportunities even more widely available to customers."